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8.24.18

The Ultimate Training Partners: Zach and Julie Ertz

When it’s time to take your athletic career to the next level, finding a training partner will hold you accountable, so you can excel in your sport. Professional football player, Zach Ertz, and professional soccer player, Julie Ertz, encompass all that it means to be the perfect training partners and the ultimate team. Even though the two play different sports, they are always working hard together to be the best they can be.

The power couple has worked tirelessly to become the best possible athletes they can be. For Zach, his goal is to continue being a great teammate, especially in a game that’s so reliant on teamwork.

I do everything I can to play 16 games, to be successful as a team, and continue to get better in every aspect. I’m going into year six but I still feel like there’s a lot of room to grow in each area of my game ─ just having the mindset of always improving is something that I’m going to strive for.

Zach Ertz

Being able to recognize your strengths, weaknesses, and still work to excel as an athlete will take your game to the next level. To be in the constant mindset of improving their game, the couple adapted the idea of having a growth mindset in their training. They get creative so they can work on their craft while spending time with one another, using their workouts as an opportunity to try new things as well. This diverse style allows them to become better athletes, together.

Aerobic

A perfect example of the power couple’s spontaneous workouts is the ladder drill. This drill evolved from Julie wanting to work on her touches and Zach wanting to practice catching. From this, the two decided to go through the ladders while Julie kicked the ball and Zach caught.

Creating drills that accommodate for multiple sports can rev up the competition and allow each person to work on their individual training.

We cherish our time together, so training at the same time is something we try to do. Since our seasons don’t line up perfectly, there’s different phases of the training that we both do. We’re also very spontaneous about how we train and trying to find drills that we’re able to do together. We’ll try and find something like that to compete against each other to have fun while still working on our craft.

Zach Ertz

Strength

One of the Ertzs’ go-to strength workouts is the kettlebell swing. This targets the entire body by engaging the arms, legs, and core.

To do this workout like Zach and Julie, grab a kettlebell and place one hand on top of the other, holding the kettlebell directly in front of you. Make sure you and your partner’s feet are shoulder-width apart. From there, you’ll bend your knees slightly, push your hips back, and swing the weight between your legs. All of the momentum from this rep should come from the hip thrust, not the arms and shoulders.

If you and your partner are looking to improve strength, your focus should be on lower rep count and heavier weight. But, if you two are looking to build endurance, use lighter weight and more repetition.

Lifting is easy for us to do together when we’re at the gym and can do similar movements. The weight is different, but it’s nice to ask Zach specific things to work on.

Julie Ertz

Core & Balance

Incorporating workouts that target core and balance are important for any training routine. For example, single-arm medicine ball pushups are great for shoulders, chest, and core. Because this move involves one hand on the medicine ball and one on the floor, it forces your body to be balanced and stable while doing the pushup.

Zach and Julie always make time for core and balance workouts, especially since that is an area any athlete can strengthen together. To start this movement, get into a pushup position with one hand on the medicine ball and the other on the floor. Then, you and your workout partner will lower to a pushup position and then press up. Continue doing this to build core strength and to improve your balance.

Working with a partner on core moves like this helps keep you determined during your workout and allows both people to push themselves to the strongest they can be.

We make it a priority to train together while still completing our regular workout routines. So, we’ll typically do our own thing for a bit and come together at the end to do core work, balance, or running.

Zach Ertz

Recovery

Training is one aspect but recovery is just as important, so we’re very meticulous. We get a lot of massages.

Zach Ertz

We also like to go into the pool, which is easy for us because we love to swim.

Julie Ertz

The Ertz’s never end a workout or a day without doing some sort of recovery routine, so neither should you. Regularly using a foam roller and stretching can offer a variety of benefits such as reducing inflammation, scar tissue, and joint stress, while improving your body’s blood circulation and overall flexibility. As a training athlete, it’s important to spend as much time in recovery as you would training.

The best places to start foam rolling are in the upper back (thoracic spine), under the side of your armpit (latissimus dorsi), the quadriceps, the hips (IT band), the glutes, hamstrings, calves, and shins. Overall, you should be spending a minimum of 10 minutes in recovery after every workout.

I’ll foam roll and stretch every night. I’m still trying to get Julie to do that. She’s more of just the ‘pass out cold’ whereas I like to get another foam roll or stretching session in before I go to bed to make sure the body’s waking up feeling good again.

Zach Ertz

Zach and Julie Ertz keep their routine spontaneous so they can remain the ultimate training partners for each other. Taking their workout routine and adapting it into your own will make you a better athlete, while improving your craft. Having a training partner like Zach and Julie will keep you working harder and holding yourself accountable. Who will help you take your athletic career to the next level?